1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a seat belt anchor mechanism suitable for use in an occupant-restraining seat belt system in order to fasten the associated webbing to the side of the associated vehicle body in the event of an emergency, and particularly to a separable seat belt anchor mechanism in which its seat-side element or elements and its webbing-side element or elements are separated from each other to permit free sliding of the associated seat in the event of an emergency.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There have conventionally been known various seat belt anchor mechanisms, each of which is composed of an anchor stay defining a plurality of interlocking teeth and fixed on the side of a vehicle body, a base plate carrying an occupant-restraining webbing fastened thereto and being movable as an integral member together with the associated seat along the anchor stay when the seat is caused to slide back and forth, and an interlocking member provided fixedly on the base plate for engagement with any one of the interlocking teeth. In such conventional seat belt anchor mechanisms, the associated seats were unable to slide even after emergencies such as vehicle collisions, because the base plates coupled to the corresponding vehicle bodies by way of their associated interlocking portions and anchor stays were kept connected with the sides of the associated seats. They were thus accompanied by a problem that the occupants, who wore the webbings, were not allowed to escape promptly from their seats with ease after the occurrence of such emergencies. This problem is serious particularly for occupants in the rear seat of a two-door car.